The Dodgers don’t yet know if they’ll travel to Milwaukee to face the Brewers or welcome the Cubs into Dodger Stadium for Monday’s NLCS series opener, but that’s not stopping them from making plans for the series. Specifically, manager Dave Roberts told reporters this afternoon (including MLB.com’s Sonja Chen) that he expects the club to add at least one more pitcher in the upcoming series, having already had 11 pitchers (plus Shohei Ohtani) in the National League against the Phillies.
So that means shortening the bench to six players from this past series. Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register advises utility crews Kim Hye Sung and outfielders Justin Dean is the most likely candidate to be excluded from the NLCS roster. Kim, 26, posted a 95 wRC+ in 71 regular-season games during his rookie season after signing with the Korean Dodgers in the offseason. He has primarily played second base this year, but has also made guest appearances at shortstop and center field. Dean, meanwhile, has made just two major league appearances this year as he has been used almost exclusively as a backup baserunner by Los Angeles. However, he does have a stolen base this postseason, and King has just appeared in two series in Los Angeles so far.
Alex Call, Ben Rotwitand Miguel Rojas All starters have been tied in the postseason and seem likely to once again be part of the backup mix heading into the NLCS. Dalton Rush Little playing time so far, but considering the Dodgers may need insurance at the catcher position will smith He was bowling with a hairline fracture in his bowling arm. Keeping Rush on the roster means the Dodgers will have two catchers available, even if Smith needs to rest a game or two at some point to manage injuries. Without a three-catcher setup, Smith would likely need to rest a day or two before going on the injured list, which would keep him from playing in the World Series if the Dodgers were to advance.
It seems that one player who will definitely not be removed from the roster is the versatile Enrique Hernandez. Hernandez has been the club’s starting left fielder in this postseason, and while it’s been known that he’s been nursing a back injury since the wild-card series against Cincinnati, The Athletic’s Fabian Aldaya relayed that Hernandez has performed well despite the injury and that a few days of rest between the end of the National League and the start of the National League should help him get healthy. Hernandez has a long history of postseason excellence and that hasn’t changed this year, posting a .318/.400/.409 slash line (132 wRC+) in 25 games.
Returning to the rotation, Roberts told reporters (including Chen) that while Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto He doesn’t expect the Dodgers will need more than four starters in the upcoming seven games due to the need for extra rest between starts. This quartet is the aforementioned duo of Otani and Yamamoto, plus Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow. Clayton Kershaw and Emmett Sheehan Both men have been able to provide significant minutes out of the bullpen so far, and heading into the NLCS, there could be someone like that Ben Casparis or Andrew Heaney Being added to the playoff roster gives the team another long relief option.
